Also see:
On 05/23/2022,
in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, active learning, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, education technology, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, face-to-face, faculty/staff, graphics, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), interactivity, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning spaces, liberal arts, mathematics, Michigan, online learning, online media, online tutoring, participation, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, teaching & learning, tools, training / L&D, United States, universities,
by Daniel Christian
On 05/20/2022,
in adjunct faculty, corporate universities / corporate training, education technology, faculty/staff, internet, IT in HE, productivity / tips and tricks, teachers, tools, training / L&D,
by Daniel Christian
10 Best Web Highlighters for Desktop in 2022 — from hongkiat.com by Kei Watanabe
Excerpt:
Have you used any web highlighters? It helps us improve our productivity by copying and pasting important texts you’ve found online automatically, saving good articles in your directory, and highlighting important sentences on articles so that you can remember them when looking back.
In this article, I’ll introduce you to 10 useful web highlighters for the desktop. All these tools offer different features and you can read about each tool in detail in the following.
On 05/20/2022,
in adjunct faculty, business side of he, career development, colleges, community colleges, faculty/staff, higher education, United States, universities,
by Daniel Christian
On 05/20/2022,
in adjunct faculty, CMS/LMS, collaboration, education technology, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, face-to-face, faculty/staff, flipping -- inverted learning, future, future of higher education, higher education, innovation, instructional design, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, library / librarians, organizational change, pedagogy, teaching & learning, United States, universities, using teams,
by Daniel Christian
The Pandemic’s Lasting Lessons for Colleges, From Academic Innovation Leaders — from edsurge.com by Nadia Tamez-Robledo, Rebecca Koenig, and Jeffrey R. Young
Excerpts:
“Universities are in the business of knowledge, but universities do a very poor job of managing their own knowledge and strategy,” says Brian Fleming, associate vice chancellor of learning ecosystem development at Northeastern University. “You may have faculty members who study organizational development, but none of that gets applied to the university.”
…
University leaders should learn to think more like futurists, he argues, working to imagine scenarios that might need planning for but are beyond the usual one-year or five-year planning cycles.
The pandemic prompted more faculty to ask the question, “What do we actually want to use class time for?” says Tyler Roeger, director of the center for the enhancement of teaching and learning at Elgin Community College. And the answer many of them are landing on, he adds, is: “Actual face-to-face time can be dedicated to problem-working, and working in groups together.”
On 05/20/2022,
in active learning, adjunct faculty, blended learning, career development, colleges, communications, community colleges, education technology, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, faculty/staff, higher education, hybrid learning, ideas, instructional design, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, online learning, participation, pedagogy, skills, teaching & learning, tools, United States, universities, vendors,
by Daniel Christian
4 Online Tactics to Improve Blended Learning — from campustechnology.com by Megan Burke, CPA, Ph.D.
An accounting professor shares how best practices from online pedagogy have helped her create a blended learning environment that supports student success.
Excerpts:
Now that students are back in the classroom, I have been combining these tactics with in-person instruction to create a blended learning environment that gives my students the best of both worlds.
The right activities, on the other hand, can make a significant difference. For example:
- Breakout rooms (for think/pair/share);
- Polls and quizzes that are low-stakes and anonymous to encourage full engagement;
- Using the whiteboard option; and
- Having reviews of material at the end of class.
I also encourage faculty (and myself!) to get out and meet with employers and ask what we can do to better prepare students, so that we can get a better feel for what first-year staff really need to know — and ensure that we present that knowledge and information in the classroom.
On 05/19/2022,
in business side of he, career development, change, changing business models, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, curriculum, faculty/staff, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, leadership, parents/guardians, participation, society, United States, universities,
by Daniel Christian
The Exit Interview Nine departing presidents on how the job — and higher ed — is changing. — from chronicle.com by Eric Kelderman
“One of the things I’ve learned in this job is that it’s time for us to really think hard about the obligations the postsecondary educational sector has to the country,” Quillen said. “What is, as it were, the social contract between that sector and the society that supports us? And what do we need to do to fulfill our obligations there?”
Carol Quillen
Carol Quillen
On 05/19/2022,
in active learning, colleges, community colleges, education technology, elearning, faculty/staff, higher education, IT in HE, learning, learning spaces, liberal arts, teachers, teaching & learning, technology (general), tools, United States, universities,
by Daniel Christian
A Rubric for Selecting Active Learning Technologies — from er.educause.edu by Katie Bush, Monica Cormier, and Graham Anthony
A rubric can be an invaluable aid in evaluating how well technologies support active learning.
Excerpt:
Because the use of active learning is characterized by a broad range of activities in the classroom, comparing technology and determining which option provides more benefit to an active learning classroom can be difficult. The Rubric for Active Learning Technology Evaluation can provide some differentiation when comparing technology offerings. It has been designed to reveal subtle but impactful differences between technology in the context of active learning. The rubric was designed to be a tool for comparative technology evaluation and as such should be quick to use when comparing similar technologies. It is freely available to use and adapt under a Creative Commons license.
On 05/13/2022,
in active learning, adjunct faculty, change, creativity, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, education reform, faculty/staff, higher education, innovation, instructional design, learning, Learning Experience Design, multimedia, open courseware and systems, teaching & learning, United States, universities, using teams, vision/possibilities,
by Daniel Christian
Why Improving Student Learning is So Hard — from opencontent.org by David Wiley
Excerpt:
2. Student behavior will normally change only in response to changes in faculty behavior – specifically, the assignments faculty give and the support faculty provide.
For many students, the things-they-do-to-learn are all located within the relatively small universe of things their faculty assign them to do – read chapters, complete homework assignments, etc. For a variety of reasons, and many of them perfectly good reasons, “students don’t do optional” – they only do what they’re going to be graded on.
Therefore, students will likely engage in more effective learning behaviors ONLY IF their faculty assign them more effective learning activities. Faculty can further increase the likelihood of students engaging in more effective learning activities if they support them appropriately throughout the process.
From DSC:
I can put an “Amen” to the above excerpt. For years I managed a Teaching & Learning Digital Studio. Most of the students didn’t come into the Studio for help, because most of the faculty members assigned the normal kinds of things (papers, quizzes, and such). Had there been more digitally-created means of showing what students knew, there would have been more usage of the T&L Digital Studio.
Also, if we want to foster more creativity and innovation — as well as give our learners more choice and more control over their learning — we should occasionally get away from the traditional papers.
Another comment here is that it’s hard to change what faculty members do, when Instructional Designers can’t even get in the car to help faculty members navigate. We need more team-based efforts in designing our learning experiences.
On 05/11/2022,
in 21st century, A/V -- audio/visual, adjunct faculty, collaboration, colleges, communications, community colleges, corporate universities / corporate training, digital audio, digital video, distance education, education technology, experimentation, faculty/staff, higher education, Hyflex learning, instructional design, IT in HE, K-12 related, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, learning theories, liberal arts, pedagogy, platforms, remote teaching and learning, smart classrooms, teachers, teaching & learning, technology (general), telecommunications, tools, training / L&D, United States, universities, user experience (UX), vendors, videoconferencing,
by Daniel Christian
Technology for HyFlex Classrooms: Major Considerations — from hyflexlearning.org by Brian Beatty
Excerpts:
This post describes four aspects of classroom technology that are very important to address when developing a HyFlex approach that can be effective at scale.
…
The classroom technology needs can be organized into four areas:
- two-way audio stream (connection),
- incoming video presentation of remote learners
- outgoing video presentation of classroom and learners
- interactive technology to support interaction, engagement, and formative assessment
Also re: hyflex teaching — where some students are physically present and some are coming into the class remotely– see:
Part I – Motivating Learners by Building Efficacy (Confidence) through Scaffolding and Support— from hyflexlearning.org by Jeanne Samuel
Excerpts:
HyFlex delivery may be new to many learners. Therefore, it is important to provide them with the supports they need to be successful. Regardless of the delivery mode, learners are motivated by success and by instructor presence. In part one of this topic post, we will write about how instructor support and feedback (a form of guidance) can motivate learners and build learner confidence.
PART II- Feedback for Improving Student Success and Satisfaction — from hyflexlearning.org by Jeanne Samuel
Excerpt:
In part 1 of this post, we focused on how feedback and support promote learner confidence. Learner confidence can lead to improved learner retention, progression, and success regardless of the class delivery mode. In part 2, we focus on feedback strategies.
On 05/04/2022,
in active learning, adjunct faculty, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, culture, Daniel S. Christian, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, face-to-face, faculty/staff, higher education, ideas, innovation, instructional design, law schools, leadership, Learning Experience Design, pedagogy, real-world assignments, strategy, student-related, teaching & learning, traditional / tradition, United States, universities, vision/possibilities,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC:
The resource below (from The Chronicle of Higher Education) is one of the best, most useful articles I’ve read in a long time. It’s full of innovative and/or powerful ideas. I like the part about seeking to give students “more voice, more choice, more control.”
5 No-Cost or Low-Cost Ways to Improve Your Campus — from chronicle.com by Richard J. Light and Allison Jegla
Change doesn’t have to be expensive. It’s often sparked by a simple suggestion and a leader willing to give it a try.
Excerpts (emphasis DSC):
No. 1: Reward innovative teaching. Lynne Schofield, a professor of statistics at Swarthmore College, has fundamentally changed the way her students learn basic and intermediate statistics. She lectures and assigns problem sets but she also teams up with local Philadelphia organizations such as food banks and blood-donation centers to give students an opportunity to solve real-world problems using their classroom knowledge. The organizations benefit from data and analysis that they may not have had time or bandwidth to collect themselves, and the students see the practical application of what they might ordinarily have perceived as a dry subject.
No. 2: Solicit ideas from students. …
They met with a dean and proposed a public event called, “10 Big Ideas, 10 Professors, 10 Minutes Each.”
When the dean agreed, the students took the lead on selecting and inviting professors to each present the “most exciting new idea” in their academic field, in less than 10 minutes.
On 05/04/2022,
in 21st century, Alternatives, business side of he, change, changing business models, colleges, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, cost of getting a degree, culture, curriculum, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, Emotion, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, faculty/staff, future of higher education, game-changing environment, health, higher education, leadership, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, more voice more choice more control, traditional / tradition,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC:
After seeing the item below, I thought, “Hmmm…traditional institutions of higher education better look out if alternatives continue to gain momentum.” Perhaps it’s wise to double down on efforts to gather feedback from students, families, parents, businesses, and other stakeholders in the workplace regarding what they want and need — vs. what the faculty members of institution ABC want to teach.
A Third of U.S. College Students Consider Withdrawing — from news.gallup.com by Stephanie Marken
Excerpt:
Editor’s Note: The research below was conducted in partnership between the Lumina Foundation and Gallup.
About a third (32%) of currently enrolled students pursuing a bachelor’s degree report they have considered withdrawing from their program for a semester or more in the past six months. A slightly higher percentage of students pursuing their associate degree, 41%, report they have considered stopping out in the past six months. These are similar to 2020 levels when 33% of bachelor’s degree students reported they had considered stopping out and 38% of associate degree students said the same.
On 04/29/2022,
in adjunct faculty, business side of he, career development, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, faculty/staff, higher education, United States, universities,
by Daniel Christian
Higher ed faces shrinking workforce and pay increases outpaced by inflation — from highereddive.com by Laura Spitalniak
Dive Brief (emphasis DSC):
- The median salary increase for all higher ed professionals was less than half of the inflation rate in 2021-2022, according to workforce survey data released Wednesday by the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources, CUPA-HR.
- Administrators saw the greatest average salary increase, at 3.4%. The salaries of professional staff rose 2.9%, while tenure-track and nontenure-track faculty got average increases of 1.6% and 1.5%, respectively. The consumer price index for 2021 was 6.8%, the largest increase in decades.
- The size of full-time and part-time staff as well as tenure-track faculty declined. CUPA-HR said colleges are feeling the same nationwide hiring and retention challenges as other employers.
From DSC:
This is going to hurt higher ed — how much so remains to be seen. But losing real purchasing power and working harder than ever doesn’t make for an effective, appealing, winning, long-term career proposition.
On the parental side of things, I’m not at all excited to have to absorb even higher costs as our son continues to make his way through college.